Happy Birthday, Erik!

by verdemama on May 11, 2010

Today is the 30-somethingth (mumblemumble) birthday of my dear husband, Erik. In honor of his special day, I thought I’d take a moment to tell you all what a great dad he is and publicly bestow him with gratitude for all that he does for our family. Here goes.

Not only does Erik devote many hours each week working for the man in his incredibly demanding job, but when he comes home he still musters the time and energy to entertain Hurricane Orion while mama “relaxes” by making dinner (I do so with wine or beer in hand—so by that point in the day, yes, I consider it to be relaxing). This alone rocks, but there’s more.

I’m also appreciating more and more his unique dude-esque approach to parenting. He uses some tactics that I, at first, think would never work in a million years, but then he tries them and… they work.

Case in point: After Orion finishes a meal, I might take his cloth bib and gingerly dab the food off his face, resulting in a screaming, writhing Orion and a full minute or two of frustrating struggle to get the job done. Erik, on the other hand, has a different approach. He will grab a towel from the kitchen, maybe get it wet, maybe not, then grab Orion’s head in one hand and smoosh the towel on his face with the other, giving it a good rub as if polishing a bowling ball. The result? A fuss-free clean face in about two seconds flat. Orion never knows what hit him.

Another example: Some nights Orion fights going to sleep no matter how much I rock, shush, soothe or sing to him. I’ll storm out of his room after an hour of trying to soothe him and call in the reinforcements. Erik will basically walk into Orion’s room announcing (semi-sternly), “Orion. It’s time to sleep. Good night,” and walk out. And then? Orion falls asleep. Just like that.

Erik is a great dad and husband and I’m one lucky girl to have him around. Happy birthday, sweets!